


The Reason

by gryffindorwriter



Category: The Walking Dead (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Angst, Denial of Feelings, Feelings Realization, Flirting, Fluff, Fluff and Angst, M/M, Slow Burn
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-11-26
Updated: 2018-12-06
Packaged: 2019-08-29 17:35:24
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 7
Words: 10,914
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16748542
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/gryffindorwriter/pseuds/gryffindorwriter
Summary: It wasn't meant to happen this way. They were just supposed to be meeting up to train, to eventually get their communities back together. They weren't meant to be falling in love with each other as they did it. But even in the new world, life has a funny way of pushing people together.An Aaron/Jesus fic, starting around 907 and changing the end of 908.





	1. Prologue – The Beginning

**Author's Note:**

> Well, I've never written for The Walking Dead before, nor have I written for Aaron or Jesus, but I couldn't help but feel like their story was left unfinished, especially after the ending of 908, so I decided to give writing for them and finishing off the story in my brain a go. And because I know there are a few Aaron/Jesus fans out there, I decided to post it here for your hopeful enjoyment!

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> It wasn't meant to happen this way. They were just supposed to be meeting up to train, to eventually get their communities back together. They weren't meant to be falling in love with each other as they did it. But even in the new world, life has a funny way of pushing people together.
> 
> An Aaron/Jesus fic, starting around 907 and changing the end of 908.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Well, I've never written for The Walking Dead before, nor have I written for Aaron or Jesus, but I couldn't help but feel like their story was left unfinished, especially after the ending of 908, so I decided to give writing for them and finishing off the story in my brain a go. And because I know there are a few Aaron/Jesus fans out there, I decided to post it here for your hopeful enjoyment!

For Aaron, losing Eric had been, in many aspects, the worst thing he’d ever had to endure. Sure, the end of the world as he knew it and having to start over had been difficult, but Eric had been the one stable thing in his life. The one thing, the one person, he always knew he could count on. Losing Eric had torn him apart from the inside out.  


And yet seven years later, love wasn’t on his mind. He knew, deep down, that Eric would want him to be happy, and if that meant moving on with someone else, that was fine. But Aaron still didn’t think he had it in him to take that leap.  


The closest thing he’d done to taking that leap was being with Jesus.  


The secret meetings they’d been having were, in a way, the one stable thing in his life now that Eric couldn’t fill that role any longer. Seeing Jesus every week, having Jesus train him to fight, just sitting, just talking with Jesus about the communities and their lives somehow started to fill the void that losing Eric had left in his soul. Jesus was the person Aaron never knew he needed.

* * *

For Jesus, getting close to people was only something he thought about. Falling in love was out of the question. There were only two things in his life that mattered: the Hilltop and Maggie, his home and a woman he’d grown to trust more than anyone in his life. And the world had ended. The thought of falling in love with someone in a world like this rarely crossed his mind when he was fighting for his life.  


Though, he admitted, it would be nice.  


And seven years after defeating Negan, six years after losing Rick, nothing much had changed in that aspect. His life had changed dramatically in other ways, with the communities and his job as leader of Hilltop now that Maggie was gone. He often found himself feeling a little like a stranger in his own life.  


But the closest thing he got to feeling like himself again was being with Aaron.  


The person he’d never thought he’d get really close to was the one person he found that he felt like himself around. The one person he felt really knew him – not the Jesus that was (badly) leading Hilltop, not the person that everyone expected him to be. Just him. Plain old Jesus. And just being around him made Jesus feel a little less like a stranger, and a little more like himself.


	2. Chapter One

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> It wasn't meant to happen this way. They were just supposed to be meeting up to train, to eventually get their communities back together. They weren't meant to be falling in love with each other as they did it. But even in the new world, life has a funny way of pushing people together.
> 
> An Aaron/Jesus fic, starting around 907 and changing the end of 908.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for the lovely response to the first little part of this fic. I'm really looking forward to writing for these characters, this fandom and this ship and I hope you all continue to enjoy it as much as I enjoy writing it!
> 
> This chapter takes place in 907 and sort of chronicles the main events of Aaron and Jesus in that episode – much of the dialogue and stuff is taken directly from the episode, but the internal monologues and thoughts are all from my own head. We'll start delving into the non canon things in about Chapter 3, after I've covered 908. I hope you're looking forward to it!

For more than a while, Aaron had found himself looking forward to his secret meet-ups with Jesus more than anything else. He had his job at Alexandria, he had other things to do and he had Gracie to look after and raise, but the one thing in his life that was solely _his_ were the meet-ups with Jesus. Nobody else knew about them. They were private, and they belonged to no one but the two of them. It was nice to have something so solely _theirs_ in a time when both of them had to be so open with their communities.

Of all the people he’d expected to sneak out of Alexandria for, he hadn’t thought it’d be Jesus. He’d figured it’d be someone else, someone he knew better, someone he’d known for longer. But the more time he and Jesus spent together, the more Aaron became convinced that he probably wouldn’t sneak out of Alexandria for anyone else.

Well, _that_ and the fact that he was getting good at fighting and, he thought, taking Jesus off guard. And, after barrelling Jesus off his horse and knocking him to the ground in one swift, quick move, Aaron was sure he’d finally done it. 

The more time Jesus spent training him, the better Aaron got at it and the more convinced he became that no one would be able to train him as well as Jesus could. 

As they fought, with Aaron taking it more seriously than he probably should have and Jesus definitely not taking it as seriously as Aaron was sure future fighting partners would, Aaron thought he was doing pretty well. Learning to fight with his prosthetic arm had been challenging at first, much like getting used to just living with it, but now it was one of his greatest assets. 

Yet it was with his regular arm that he managed to hit Jesus clean in the face. _Hard._

Aaron’s mouth fell open in a gasp straight away. He was taking it seriously, of course, but he didn’t want to actually _hurt_ Jesus. No, it was all just training. Just play fighting. None of the punches they’d been delivering to one another had been intended to cause real damage.

The momentum of the fight dropped instantly and Jesus stepped back. Worry flooded Aaron’s body. He’d hurt him. He’d actually delivered a punch that had _hurt_ him. Shit.

“Oh, sorry, sorry–” he began, eyebrows knotted in his worry.  “Sorry. You okay?"

He leant in closer, worried and hoping that Jesus was okay when–

Jesus swung back into action without hesitation, his leg kicking Aaron’s stomach and forcing him backwards. He laughed as they moved and then they were both on the ground. 

Aaron, not having had a moment to be relieved that he hadn’t hurt Jesus, took a second to himself and stayed on the ground as Jesus stood to his feet. And then he realised why Jesus had kicked his ass again.

"You heard me coming again."

Jesus smiled and extended a hand to help Aaron up from the ground.

"You’re still a little heavy on your left foot."

Aaron chuckled softly as they started to walk back over to the horses. He’d truly thought he had it. He’d thought he’d really caught Jesus off guard for once and yet, he hadn’t. He smiled as he raised a hand to pat Jesus on the back. He’d get him one day. He knew it.

The two found their usual spot with ease and tied the horses up before sitting on the log and pulling out their food. This was what they usually did after training – sat down together, talked for a bit and ate. It was the equivalent of a cool down session and it was something that the both of them enjoyed. Even when they weren’t training, even when they weren’t even talking, the two of them had somehow grown to find comfort in the others silence.

“Wasn’t today election day? Or re-election day, as it were?” Aaron started.

Jesus nodded as he finished off his drink.  “That’s why I was late. Partly. It’s been harder and harder to get away.” He wasn’t particularly happy to be re-elected, but he knew that he’d have to deal with it. As he’d said to Tara earlier that day – a win was guaranteed if no one ran against you, and nobody had run against Jesus yet or, he figured, in the near or distant future. And his job as leader would end as soon as Maggie returned. Jesus hoped it’d be sooner rather than later.

“Tara can’t cover for you?” Aaron asked.

“If she knew I’d been coming this far out without the security detail… as it is she wants to have me tried for dereliction of duty.” Jesus sighed. He knew that he was technically breaking a million rules by coming out this far on his own, but he didn’t have any plans to stop it just yet. Getting some time away from Hilltop, being with Aaron… he liked it more than he liked leading.

Aaron understood Jesus perfectly.  “If Michonne knew I was violating protocol like this... same boat, my friend.” After what had happened, Michonne had become a lot more strict regarding security around Alexandria and Aaron knew that if she found out, he’d be in trouble, though he was willing to continue risking it. After all, he’d come this far without being caught.

“I don’t suppose she’s changed her mind about the fair,” Jesus started.

"Now you’re kidding, right? ”

Jesus laughed at Aaron’s tone.

"She won’t even put it to a re-vote. Not since she tanked the first one with council."

“Just like she did with the new people.” Jesus sighed.  “The fair’s important, Aaron. Not just for The Kingdom, for all of us. We have to come back together.” While the fair was part of the reason he and Aaron had been meeting up this whole time, he knew that it wasn’tthe only important thing. If the two of them couldn’t bring Alexandria and Hilltop together again… he shook his head. 

Aaron nodded in agreement.  “But Michonne… she doesn’t even know about Maggie–”

The two of them were cut off by the sight and sound of the flare, cutting their session short. And as the two of them rode back to Hilltop with an injured Rosita, Aaron couldn’t help but feel a little disappointed that he hadn’t had as much time with Jesus as he’d expected he would. Even though helping Rosita, and later Eugene, was his priority now, he realised, as soon as they set off for Hilltop, that everything would change now.

The moments he’d cherished so much with Jesus, the _private_ moments that had belonged to only the two of them were going to become public sooner than either of them had anticipated, and as they rode through Hilltop’s gates later that day, both of them couldn’t help but feel more than a twinge of disappointment that the one stable thing in Aaron’s life and the time alone with the one person that made Jesus feel like himself was suddenly being torn away from them. 


	3. Chapter Two

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> It wasn't meant to happen this way. They were just supposed to be meeting up to train, to eventually get their communities back together. They weren't meant to be falling in love with each other as they did it. But even in the new world, life has a funny way of pushing people together.
> 
> An Aaron/Jesus fic, starting around 907 and changing the end of 908.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, here's chapter three! This is the final chapter that takes place in the majority of the 'canon' storyline, except the ending is changed (of course) and takes place in 908. After this, all of the stuff that takes place will pretty much be from my own imagination out of where I wished the story would have gone. 
> 
> I really enjoyed writing this and I really appreciate all your support and kindness on the first two parts – I hope you'll enjoy this part. The ending is based on what I'd guessed would happen at the end of 908 and also based a little on Issue #154 of the comics! Anyway, enjoy!

Jesus knew that there was something strange going on with the herd the second he laid eyes on it. As he, Daryl and Aaron stood in the field, with Dog close by, his eyes barely left the herd. There was just something about it… something not right. He could tell that Daryl and Aaron felt the same way, but none of them had the first clue to figuring out what it was. They’d been dealing with walkers for over seven years now, but this was new. 

“There’s about a hundred and thirty, hundred and forty of them,” Daryl said, rejoining the two of them after checking out the numbers they were up against.

“You ever see them do this before?” Jesus asked, turning around to face Aaron. 

The look on Aaron’s face told Jesus everything he needed to know. “No. Never.”

Daryl spoke again. “Rosita’s back trail goes right through ‘em. We should get the horses, circle round. Then we’ll pick it up on foot.” 

Aaron glanced back at him. “What about them?”

“What about ‘em?”

“They’re just milling around,” Jesus explained. “That’s not normal.” A feeling of unease was slowly making its way into his body, and for someone so confident most of the time, he didn’t like it. They needed to find Eugene, but these walkers were undoubtedly going to be trouble.

“Nah…” Daryl agreed. “No, it ain’t.” He paused as the wind picked up and swirled around them. Behind them, the sky was darkening. “We should go. There’s a storm coming. Dog.”

Aaron stood and followed Daryl away from the log, Dog rushing past him as he moved. But, for only a second, Jesus stayed put, standing and staring out at the herd, his eyebrows slightly furrowed in his confusion and worry. These walkers… they weren’t right, and Jesus had a feeling that by the end of the day, they wouldn’t be the only strange thing he’d seen.

* * *

After getting the horses, circling round and then starting to pick up the trail on foot, the three of them and Dog began the long trek to find the barn that Rosita had left Eugene in. There couldn’t be too many to pick from in the area and all three of them were hoping they’d find him sooner rather than later. It was getting into the afternoon and Jesus desperately wanted to be back at the Hilltop before dark. 

When Daryl and Dog ran off ahead, Aaron turned to Jesus. “Daryl says he’s been trading with Hilltop again.”

Jesus nodded. “He used to come like clockwork a couple times a year. Never stayed, though. Gaps between the trips got longer and longer. He prefers it out here, I suppose.”

“Sounds like somebody else I know,” Aaron smiled.

Jesus smiled in return, understanding instantly that Aaron meant him. And it was true – he did prefer it out in the wild. It’s why he liked leaving Hilltop to meet up with Aaron so much. But after a while, sneaking out became more about Aaron and less about being outside the safety of Hilltop. “We used to be explorers. The whole world was ours to rediscover.”

“Well, we were out looking for people. Offering them a chance to be a part of something bigger. Because of you we were able to find each other. Maybe showing those people a way forward is the next step in that,” Aaron suggested.

Aaron had never really told Jesus that he was grateful for Jesus finding Rick and Daryl and, in extension, Alexandria. Back when he was recruiting, he’d barely even thought about the possibility of other communities just like them, but then Jesus showed him that they existed. Jesus was the one who brought them all together in the first place. And even though Jesus and Aaron had taken a while to strike up their friendship, Aaron wouldn’t change a thing now.

“I just don’t think that I–”

“I do,” Aaron cut him off. He was being completely truthful. “I think you’d be a damn good leader if you just stopped fighting it.”

The two of them stopped walking. 

“You think that’s what I’m doing?” There was a tone of challenge in Jesus’ voice, but he wasn’t intending to start something. He just knew that he wasn’t cut out for leading. He’d liked recruiting for the Hilltop, and he’d enjoyed being Maggie’s second when she was leading. But him, being in control of everything? It was never something he could get his head around. Never something he could fully feel like himself doing. 

Aaron turned to look at Daryl, standing a few feet away from them. “He spent a long time keeping people away. But finding them? It’s kind of his thing. Maybe one day he’ll stop fighting it, too.”

The wind started to pick up and the two of them watched Daryl as he listened to it, his tracking senses kicking in. The sound of the walkers was faint, but all three of them could hear it.

“That herd, it’s coming for us,” Daryl said. “The wind is carrying its sound.”

Aaron and Jesus turned to look around them. The unease that had disappeared while the two of them were speaking suddenly returned and they shared a look of worry before looking back at Daryl as he pulled an alarm clock out and started winding it. He threw it off into the field and turned to them.

“Come on. Let’s put some ground between us and them.”

The four of them headed off towards the trees.

* * *

Jesus looked through his binoculars at the herd. It looked larger than it did before and the unease in his stomach grew stronger. Something definitely wasn’t right with these walkers, especially if they were growing. “You put that herd around a hundred and forty, right?”

“Yeah,” Daryl said.

“Looks like more than double that now.”

“Could be a different herd,” Aaron suggested. “Or merged with another one.”

Jesus didn’t like Aaron’s theories, even though they seemed to be the most obvious. This was something else. More than a different herd and more than merging herds. Something more dangerous and something much less simple. 

“It ain’t gon’ be there very long.”

The alarm from the alarm clock Daryl had thrown in the paddock started to go off. The three of them watched as the herd started to turn towards the noise. Aaron, smiling, turned to Jesus and Daryl. It was working. 

“No matter how big it is, as long as it’s going the other way. Come on,” Daryl finished, starting to walk further into the trees. Dog and Aaron followed him, but Jesus stayed behind for a second, just like before, watching the herd.

Something was going on with them, and he wanted to find out what.

* * *

By the time they found the barn, it was dark. Fog was starting to creep in around them and it didn’t help with the unease all three of them were feeling. With their torches in hand, they advanced on the barn quickly, with Daryl sending Dog in first to find Eugene if he was there. All of them were hoping this was the one.

The relief they felt when hearing Eugene’s voice was mutual.

After they helped Eugene out and into the barn, they listened as he explained what had happened to him and Rosita, including a leg injury that explained why Rosita had left him there.

But the more he kept talking, the stranger things got.

“No, we have to get out of here. The herd that followed us here is on its way back.”

Daryl shook his head. “I saw their tracks, they’re gone.”

“No, it’s not. It’s already been through here twice. It’s looking for me. We have to get away before it comes back,” Eugene looked around at them. “This wasn’t a normal herd.”

Aaron paused. “What do you mean?”

“When they passed us by, we could hear them. They were… they were whispering to each other,” Eugene whimpered.

Aaron looked up at Jesus. Any other day the two of them wouldn’t have believed him. But they’d seen how strange the herd had been acting and they knew something else was going on. And Eugene wouldn’t be acting so terrified for no reason. Part of Jesus didn’t want to believe Eugene, but he’d seen the herd and he’d known something was strange about them. Maybe this was it.

“You mean they were talking?” Aaron asked.

“I know how it sounds, but Rosita heard it too. She’ll corroborate.”

Daryl piped up. “We should get him back.”

“Yeah.”

Aaron moved to help Eugene up from the ground. Now that it was dark outside, he felt even more nervous, and seeing and hearing the way Eugene had spoken about the herd… it sent chills down his spine.

Before he could do so much as lift Eugene off the ground, though, Dog started barking through an opening in the barn wall. Daryl moved to him quickly and he stepped back. 

The herd had found them.

“There’s no way that’s the same heard,” Daryl mused. But seeing three herds in the space of a few hours? Daryl knew that he was wrong, even without concrete proof. 

“They got us cut off.”

Aaron and Daryl helped Eugene up from the floor instantly. They needed to get out of here or this rescue mission was going to be a failure. 

“We’ll back track. We’ll go around them.”

Jesus stepped out ahead of them, letting Daryl and Aaron wrap their arms around Eugene to keep him upright as the four of them hurried out of the barn. “Route 28 isn’t far. Straightest shot back to the horses.”

“Lead the way.”

* * *

The herd was following them. 

Aaron appeared from the trees, meeting back up with Jesus, Daryl and Eugene after watching the herd. “They’re right on our asses,” he breathed. “We gotta get to the horses, fast.”

“You have to leave me behind. I’m slowing you down and tiring you out,” Eugene said, without a moments hesitation. He realised the height of this situation instantly and knew that if he had to give his life to save theirs, it wasn’t a problem. “Every time we stop the dead get closer.”

Jesus, however, wasn’t having it. “No, we came out here to find you. We’re not going home without you!”

“You don’t have a choice!”

“It’s not your call,” Jesus continued. “The numbers actually work for us. We can split up, you two get him back to the horses, I’ll wait for the herd to get here, then I’ll draw them off in the other direction and then I’ll ditch them and meet you back at the Hilltop.”

Aaron shook his head. “We’re stronger together.” He wasn’t going anywhere without Jesus by his side. Before, finding Eugene had been the priority, but now keeping the group together took that role. He didn’t even want to think about what would happen if Jesus’ plan went wrong and he didn’t make it back to the Hilltop. 

“That doesn’t help us! Our only way out of this is to avoid a fight.” Jesus understood Aaron’s hesitation to let him go off on his own, and truly, part of him didn’t want to go off without Aaron by his side. But he knew that it was the only way to get out of it.

Daryl was quick to state his alternative, though, and he wasn’t waiting for an opinion. He was the one who’d draw the walkers away. He had Dog. He’d be fine. And so Jesus was to stay with Aaron and Eugene.

* * *

Jesus’ heart was beating faster than it ever had as he and Aaron tried to get Eugene out of the cemetery they’d stumbled into. It was pitch black and the fog that was once only around their feet had moved to surround them completely, obscuring most of their vision. Like Eugene had said, these walkers weren’t normal, and it made the threat even more potent as they tried to escape.

But the gate was jammed, and Eugene couldn’t make it over the wall. 

So the only option they had left was the one Jesus had never wanted to resort to: fighting.

Standing side by side and working together, Jesus and Aaron sliced through the first walkers with ease. Knifes stabbing into their heads, and Jesus’ sword going right through them. It was simple, just like all the walker killing they’d done before.

Jesus delivered his last kill a fatal kick in the head, smashing it against the tombstone.

The sounds of the walkers mixed with the sounds of the thunder around them, but all three of them recognised a third sound at the same time. Whispers. The walkers were whispering, just like Eugene had said they were.

Aaron, Eugene and Jesus paused, listening to the sounds of whispers around them, just as another voice, louder and more familiar, cut through the silence - Michonne.

She was at the gate, talking to Eugene, as she tried to get them out. Seconds later, she was joined by two more people that Aaron recognised. Eugene was pushing and digging with his spade and Michonne, Magna and Yumiko were pulling and digging out on their own side. There wasn’t much time to do it, so they moved as quickly as possible.

Jesus turned to Aaron. “Get him out of here! Go, I’ve got this!”

For a second, Aaron paused, a million thoughts running through his head. These walkers were something else entirely, and he wasn’t sure if he felt comfortable leaving Jesus to fend with them on his own, but the look Jesus was giving him told him to trust him, and so he did. After all, he was the one who’d taught him to fight. If anyone could deal with them, it would be Jesus.  
Leaving Jesus, a little reluctantly, Aaron headed back to the gate to help the other four get it open so they could get out. 

And Jesus started to fight.

He slashed through a walker, delivered a kick to the chest of another and then slashed and stabbed the head of a third and a fourth, killing them. For his fifth kill, Jesus leapt into the air, using the body of a walker to launch himself up, spin around and kill it. The last walker in the area died simply at Jesus’ hands.

“Jesus!” Aaron yelled. “Come on!”

They’d gotten the gate open and were waiting for him.

Happy with himself after taking down the six walkers, Jesus moved towards the final two. He killed the first easily, using his sword to slash it through the head, before moving to the second. Moving his sword up, intending to kill it in the same way, the walker took him by surprise and ducked.

The shock of the walker’s dodge was all he thought of until he felt the sword dig into his side. And then, seven words: “You are where you do not belong.”

The walker pulled its sword out of Jesus’ body. Jesus fell to the ground.

Terror filled Aaron’s system at the sight and he was screaming before he knew it, pushing the gates open and rushing towards the walker and Jesus. He didn’t stop for a second to think about his own life, because Jesus had just been stabbed – and he’d watched it happen. Michonne, Daryl, Magna and Yumiko weren’t far behind him. 

The fight broke out quickly. Walkers charged towards them, weapons in hand, and the five of them fought back, arrows and knives in full affect as they fought. And then it was over. Silence fell over the group.

Aaron, heart racing in his chest, stumbled over to where Jesus was laying, his hands instantly going to the wound in his side. He was dead– just like that. Maybe if he’d helped. If he’d told Jesus to come with him, or if he’d helped him take down the last few… But now he was gone. Dead at the hands of– of a walker, of all things.

Jesus let out a cough and Aaron’s heart jumped to his throat.

“He’s alive! Oh, you’re alive!” He called out to no one in particular.

Michonne was by his side in a second, eyes wide. How had he survived that? Her eyes moved to the wound that Aaron’s hand was covering. “You need to get him out of here,” she muttered. “My horse isn’t far. Go right when you’re out of the gate and you’ll find him. Go!”

She knelt down on the other side of Jesus and pulled him up from the ground with Aaron’s help. Jesus, barely conscious, wrapped an arm around Aaron’s shoulders and leant into his side, struggling to stay awake. He was going to survive. Aaron was going to make sure he survived.

Holding him up, Aaron moved a hand around Jesus’ back to put pressure on his wound as the two of them stumbled out of the cemetery and turned right, towards where Michonne said her horse was. Aaron could only hope that Jesus would hold on until they reached the Hilltop. He wasn’t sure what he’d do if he didn’t.


	4. Chapter Three

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> It wasn't meant to happen this way. They were just supposed to be meeting up to train, to eventually get their communities back together. They weren't meant to be falling in love with each other as they did it. But even in the new world, life has a funny way of pushing people together.
> 
> An Aaron/Jesus fic, starting around 907 and changing the end of 908.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Chapter three, here we go! This is the first chapter that really changes canon because we're past 908 here and, in my version of things, Jesus survived like he rightfully should have. Part of this is inspired by Issue #157 of the comics but the rest is from my own mind as much of the rest of this will be.
> 
> Thank you for the support and for enjoying this so far. I hope you'll continue to!

The ride back to Hilltop had been the most stressful, heart racing ride he’d ever had. With Jesus in front of him on the horse, Aaron had pushed to get back to the Hilltop as quickly as possible. Luckily, it wasn’t just Enid there when they arrived – Siddiq and Michonne, along with the newbies, had arrived while they’d been gone, meaning that the two best doctors were there to save him. They’d taken him straight away and Aaron had been left standing, afraid, in the middle of the Hilltop on his own.

Tara had found him a while later and taken him inside Barrington House. She’d told him to get some sleep but Aaron knew that would be impossible. His clothes were covered in Jesus’ blood and he didn’t even know if Jesus was still alive. Sleeping wasn’t an option.

The storm had come in while Aaron was still awake and so he found a spot by a window in the house and stayed there, staring out and listening to the downpour, his mind never straying from the moment he’d seen that sword pierce his side. It kept replaying in his mind. 

Maybe if he’d stepped in to help. If he’d refused to let Jesus fight them on his own then it would have ended better. Jesus’ life wouldn’t be hanging in the hands of Siddiq and Enid. But that walker… or whatever it was… it was always going to dodge, Aaron knew that much. Would his help have just made it worse? Would the both of them have been injured?

Aaron knew one thing: if it were him down there in surgery, it would have been less painful than having to sit here thinking about it being Jesus. Jesus, the most accomplished fighter he’d ever met. The person who’d grown to become one of the most important people in his life and his confidant, a man he’d grown to care for more than he knew. A feeling stirred in his stomach but he shook it off.

Turning to look out the window again, he heard a creak by the door and his head twisted around to see who it was, thinking it could have been Siddiq or Enid. Instead, Tara stood there, a tight lipped smile on her face.

“Have you slept?” She asked, slowly walking into the room.

Aaron shook his head. “No, I… I just can’t right now. Have you heard anything?”

Tara sat down on the couch beside him and shook her head. “No, nothing yet. But don’t get your hopes down. Siddiq and Enid are good at their jobs. They’ve got this,” she assured him. But it sounded like she was trying to convince herself of that too. “You know this was Maggie’s office, right?”

“Yeah, I remember,” Aaron hummed.

“When she left and Jesus took over, he refused to use it. He still doesn’t. Prefers to spread all the stuff out upstairs on a table and a couch,” she smiled. “Maggie would want him to have this but–”

“But he’s stubborn.”

Tara smiled and nodded. “Yeah, he sure is.”

Aaron’s gaze slipped over to the window again. The rain was a little heavier than it was before, but not too heavy. He hoped that Michonne, Eugene, Daryl, Magna and Yumiko were safe out there with whatever it was they were dealing with. Part of him felt bad for leaving them in the first place, but he knew that he’d feel even worse if he’d just let Jesus die out there.

Beside him, Tara looked at Aaron with interest. After they’d brought in Rosita from outside the walls, she and Jesus had spoken. It’d been a while since she’d seen both Rosita and Aaron, and while she was grateful to see them again, another thought couldn’t help but slip into her mind. 

“So you and Jesus were training together, then?”

Aaron nodded, keeping his gaze on the window. “Yeah, for a while now. Training, talking. Keeping the lines of communication open between the communities as best we could.”

“Is that all?”

“What do you mean?”

“Listen,” Tara sighed, sitting up. “It’s been a while since you lost Eric. And unless you’re hiding someone back at Alexandria, you haven’t moved on yet, have you?”

“That’s not a choice for me,” Aaron tried to defend himself. “But you of all people know that there’s not exactly a large array of people to pick from in this world. Besides, I have Gracie now. I don’t need to move on to someone new. I’ve moved on enough.”

Tara raised an eyebrow. “Don’t take this the wrong way, Aaron, but I saw the look on Jesus’ face when he spoke about you. I heard the way he spoke. And I don’t want you to feel like I’m pushing you two together, because I’m not. I know the importance of having friends over relationships… but you… you could be good for him, Aaron. You really could.”

Aaron opened his mouth to reply when someone appeared at the door – one of the people that had volunteered to help Siddiq and Enid. The two of them sat up instantly, eyes wide.

“What happened?” Tara began.

“The surgery was a success. He lost a lot of blood and he’ll be in recovery for a while but Siddiq and Enid say he’s looking good. He’ll be unconscious for a while longer, but if you wanna go down there, you can,” she explained.

Aaron’s heart leapt into his throat. Jesus was okay – he’d pulled through. 

Tara, smiling, rubbed his back softly. “You go. I’ll see him tomorrow.”

Without a second of hesitation, Aaron stood up from the couch and followed the volunteer out of Barrington House and through the rain to the trailer containing the infirmary. Enid and Siddiq were still inside and both of them smiled at the sight of him.

“He’ll be glad to see you when he wakes up,” Enid said, taking his hand and giving it a squeeze. “Come and get us if you need anything, okay?”

Aaron nodded as Siddiq and Enid left the trailer, leaving him and Jesus alone. Slowly, he crossed the room to the small bed where they’d placed Jesus’ body after the surgery. His face was pale even in the dark light of the room. Aaron had never seen him like this. 

He ignored the feeling that arose in his stomach once more and pulled a chair to his bedside. He was going to stay there for as long as it took for him to wake up.

* * *

The first thing Jesus saw when his eyes fluttered open the following morning was Aaron’s face. His eyes were closed and his chin resting on his chest – either asleep or resting. There was a throbbing pain in Jesus’ side and he grunted a little as he adjusted his position in the bed. Aaron stirred awake at the noise.

“Oh, thank God, you’re awake. How’re you feeling?” Aaron leant forward.

Jesus blinked slowly. “Yeah… I… how long have you been here?”

“All night, nearly,” Aaron explained. “When we got back Enid and Siddiq took you into surgery straight away. Do you… do you remember what happened?”

His eyebrows furrowed together and he frowned. “I do, but– no, it’s impossible.”

Aaron shook his head. “The walker dodged your attack. It– it stabbed you, Jesus.”

“That’s impossible.”

“I wish I could say it was but we know it’s not. Michonne, Daryl, Eugene, Magna and Yumiko are still out there. It’s been a few hours now so they should be on their way back with answers, I hope,” Aaron continued. Even talking about it made him uneasy.

“And you… you got me out of there…”

Aaron nodded. “Yeah, I got you back here with help from the others.”

Behind him, Aaron vaguely heard the door open and turned his head to see who it was. Tara and Siddiq entered the trailer, small smiles on their faces as they looked at Aaron and Jesus. 

“Hey, how are you feeling?” Tara asked, stepping up beside Aaron.

“I’ve been better,” Jesus admitted.

Siddiq chuckled. “It’s gonna take a while for you to be back on your feet and fighting like Aaron said you were last night, but you’re gonna get there. And I hear you’ll have a pretty good teacher to help you get your strength back.” He looked at Aaron.

Jesus’ face broke into a smile. He reached a hand out from under the blanket and patted Aaron’s hand softly. “Well, I knew I was training you for a reason, Aaron.”


	5. Chapter Four

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> It wasn't meant to happen this way. They were just supposed to be meeting up to train, to eventually get their communities back together. They weren't meant to be falling in love with each other as they did it. But even in the new world, life has a funny way of pushing people together.
> 
> An Aaron/Jesus fic, starting around 907 and changing the end of 908.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I really love this chapter. I feel like we're finally getting into the relationship between Aaron and Jesus and I'm really looking forward to writing more.
> 
> As usual, thank you for the support and I hope you enjoy!

When Michonne, Daryl, Magna, Yumiko and Eugene returned to Hilltop later that afternoon, Aaron was talking and catching up with Enid on the steps of Barrington House. Their eyes moved instantly to the gates as they opened and in seconds they were on their feet, walking towards the gate where the four of them walked in, leading their horses beside them – Daryl was riding his bike alongside them.

On the top of the horse that Michonne led was a girl, eyes blindfolded and hands tied.

“What happened?” Aaron asked, stopping in front of Michonne. “Who’s this?”

She had a pained look on her face. “We need to talk. All of us.”

Daryl pulled up on the bike beside her. “Jesus. Did he make it?”

Enid nodded. “He’ll be fine. He’s resting up and he lost a lot of blood but thanks to Aaron and you, Michonne, he’s going to be fine after a bit of recovery,” she explained.

Tara appeared behind them. “Is anyone else hurt?” 

Eugene raised a hand.

Siddiq and Enid stepped forward to help Eugene into Barrington House where they could tend to him without interrupting Jesus’ rest, Magna and Yumiko took their horses back to the stables and Daryl and Michonne set to taking the girl they’d captured off the horse and transporting her down to the cell that Tara had recently vacated.

Then, like Michonne had said, the talk began.

In Barrington House, Aaron took a seat beside Enid once more and waited for Michonne to start talking. She looked uneasy – a look Aaron was used to seeing after what had happened but one he never liked having to see. The second she started talking, a chill went up Aaron’s spine.

“After you and Jesus left,” Michonne started, “Daryl noticed something about the walker that stabbed him. It looked like there was some kind of incision on the back of his head that’d been stitched back together. Daryl cut it open and found this.”

Beside her, Daryl pulled a mask out of his bag – it looked like the face of a walker… no, it was the face of a walker, fashioned into a mask. 

The room went still.

“When we saw that walker dodge Jesus’ attack and stab him, we knew something was up, and this explains at least part of that,” Michonne continued. “Underneath the mask was a normal human being. Like any one of us. He hadn’t been bitten. He was just wearing a mask to make him look like the dead.”

“Was it just him?” Tara asked.

Michonne shook her head. “We had to fight again. The walkers… the people… they started charging at us. They had weapons and they were good fighters, strong. They knew what they were doing. That girl you saw us bringing in is one of them. She’s young. Seemed to be a little hesitant about the fight, especially when we killed someone she knew.”

Aaron’s eyebrows were furrowed in confusion and worry as Michonne and Daryl continued speaking. This was worse than he’d ever imagined. Just when he’d thought life was calming down. When he thought that the strangest thing that could happen was Judith bringing the new people to Alexandria without permission. When he’d thought he was going to get to settle down for a little while, spend more time with Gracie and keep sneaking out to see Jesus. But now everything was messed up once more.

* * *

Aaron sidled up next to Siddiq, sitting next to Michonne at the dining table outside with the rest of Hilltop and the few Alexandrians. “Hey, Siddiq. I have a question,” he started.

“What’s up?”

“I can take Jesus some of this food, right? He’s not on any special food regimes until he heals or something?” Aaron asked. As soon as he said the words he knew they were probably stupid, but he’d figured he’d better check anyway. 

Siddiq nodded. “No, take him some food. I would have taken some by later if you weren’t going to,” he admitted. “I checked him out just before dinner and he was still asleep but I’ll come by later and check him again.”

“All right, great, thank you,” Aaron smiled.

He went to walk away but Siddiq stopped him.

“What Michonne said today…” he started. “If whoever these people are are coming after us, Enid wants to clear out the infirmary to make sure it’s always free. Tell Jesus that we’ll move him into Barrington House in the morning. He’ll probably be more comfortable there, anyway.”

Aaron nodded in understanding and grabbed some food for Jesus and himself before heading off to the infirmary trailer. When he stepped inside, he was greeted by Jesus’ voice.

“I was just wondering when you were gonna drop by.”

Smiling, Aaron handed him the plate of food and took a seat on his regular chair beside his bed. Jesus took the food gratefully. He’d been a little hungry ever since he’d woken up twenty minutes ago and hadn’t been able to get back to sleep so he was more than grateful for Aaron having shown up with some.

“Well, here I am,” Aaron greeted.

Jesus looked down at the plate and then frowned. If he was going to eat it laying down, he was going to either choke or spill it all over himself. “Hey, would you hold this for a second? I’m gonna try and sit up a bit.”

Aaron was quick to take the plate and sit it off to the side along with his own. His hands went to Jesus’ arm to help him as he pushed himself up a little, with a grunt of pain.

“Over Seven years after the dead come back to life and I ended up almost dying now,” he muttered. “Typical.”

When he was comfortable, Aaron cautiously handed him his plate back. He hated seeing him in pain. It was so unlike the Jesus he’d come to know – the Jesus who was always confident and almost always happy. The Jesus who was a fighter. But then again, he supposed that was exactly who he was now. Still a fighter.

Half way through his dinner, Aaron turned to Jesus. “So, I was talking to Siddiq before I came in here and he said that we’re gonna move you back into Barrington House in the morning. You’ll get to sleep in your own bed again.”

“Yeah?” Jesus raised an eyebrow. “That should be good.”

“You’ll still have to be off your feet for a few days, though, and I’ll make sure of that.”

Jesus smirked and shook his head. “Oh, I’m sure you will.”

“At least you’ll be out of your leadership duties until you’re recovered. Enid mentioned to me before that Tara’s still gotta get your okay on the new people, though,” Aaron said. “But, if I may add my opinion here, I think you should let them stay.”

“New people?”

“Yeah, new people. Five of them. Magna, Yumiko, Luke, Connie and Kelly. Judith saved them outside of Alexandria a few days ago and we brought them in but Michonne didn’t want them to stay so she brought them here. Two of them, Magna and Yumiko, showed up to help us at the cemetery.”

“I’ll have to check them out,” Jesus mused. “But they sound promising… are the others back yet? From the cemetery? Do they know what happened?”

Aaron nodded. “Yeah, they got back this afternoon. But it’s a long story.”

“I’ve got time.”

Aaron repeated everything that Michonne and Daryl had told them. He watched as Jesus’ face moved from worry to confusion multiple times, just like his had when he’d first heard what they had to say. It all sounded impossible, like some kind of joke, but the both of them had seen it. They’d seen the way the walker had dodged and they knew, no matter how much they might want to deny it, it was true.

* * *

Two hours later, Aaron was still sat by Jesus’ beside. They hadn’t spoken too much and Jesus had mostly been resting, but Siddiq had come in and checked on him like he’d told Aaron he would, and he’d also taken out the dirty dishes. 

Just when Aaron had thought Jesus had drifted off to sleep again, he spoke.

“So I guess you’ll be heading back to Alexandria soon?”

Aaron sighed. He’d been thinking about it all day. Even though Alexandria was his home, even though it was where most of his family was, where Gracie was, it didn’t feel right for Aaron to just pack up and leave. At least not until Jesus was back on his feet. He knew that Gracie would be well cared for with the other children, so that took a little weight off his chest, but still, he’d been tossing the pros and cons up in his mind all day.

Finally, Aaron shook his head. “Not just yet. I was thinking I might stay a bit. Make sure things are good around here with you and the others,” he explained. “If that’s okay, of course.”

Jesus smiled. “You really think I’m in the position to kick you out?”

“Oh, I think you could if you wanted to.”

Jesus shook his head. “Well lucky for you, I don’t want to. Hilltop will be glad to have you.”

* * *

As carefully as they could, Aaron and Siddiq sat Jesus down on his bed inside Barrington House. It’d been a bit of a task to get him out of the trailer, across the yard and up the stairs of the house, but now they were there they could let out a breath of relief.

Siddiq checked Jesus’ stitches before disappearing out of the room to head back to the infirmary and grab some other things that he wanted to keep in Jesus’ room while he was still recovering.

“You feeling okay after that?” Aaron asked, worry clear on his face. He could tell that Jesus was in pain the whole time they’d been carrying him and he hated that he couldn’t do anything about it.

Jesus hummed. “Yeah, I’m good.”

Before Aaron could say anything else, Tara appeared in the doorway. “Hey, Aaron – could I grab your help for a second? I need you downstairs.”

“Yeah, I’ll be right there,” he nodded.

Tara disappeared again and just as Aaron went to walk out of the room again, Jesus stopped him. 

“Listen, before you go, I just want to tell you that I’m glad you’re staying here for a bit. Like I said last night, Hilltop will be glad to have you here, and I’ll be glad to have you around too,” he spoke. His voice was soft, almost like he didn’t want anyone else to hear it but Aaron. “And Aaron… Hilltop will always be a home for you and Gracie if you need it. I’ll make sure of it.”


	6. Chapter Five

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> It wasn't meant to happen this way. They were just supposed to be meeting up to train, to eventually get their communities back together. They weren't meant to be falling in love with each other as they did it. But even in the new world, life has a funny way of pushing people together.
> 
> An Aaron/Jesus fic, starting around 907 and changing the end of 908.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Whew, sorry this took a few days to get up! I had a busy weekend and didn't get a chance to write, but at least we're here now. This is one of my favourite parts I've written so far and I hope you enjoy it as much as I enjoyed writing it.
> 
> Thank you for your support and enjoy!

**_ONE WEEK LATER._ **

Before everything happened, before the dead started rising, a week seemed like nothing. But after, when the dead walked the earth again, a week was everything. During the week after Jesus was stabbed, a lot had happened. Aaron had stayed in Hilltop like he’d told Jesus he would, and he was earning his keep, too. Michonne and Siddiq had headed back to Alexandria and everyone had been on edge ever since. 

With the new threat not only on the Hilltop but on Alexandria and the Kingdom, too, it was understandable why everyone was looking over their shoulder all the time, anticipating some sort of attack. But nothing had happened since. It was mostly just eerily quiet. There was still a degree of separation between the communities as there had been for a while, but it was lessened just a little by the threat of the walker mask wearing humans.

The most important thing to Jesus right now wasn’t keeping Hilltop safe – though that _was_ a high priority — it was getting back on his feet. Three days after he was stabbed, with help from Aaron and Enid, Jesus had started doing small walks around Hilltop. Nothing too strenuous, nothing that would tire him out. Just small walks that he could eventually build up into longer ones to get his strength back to 100%.

For the last few days Aaron had insisted that he accompanied Jesus on his walks. Even though he knew it was important for his recovery, it still didn’t lessen the worry that he felt whenever he saw Jesus’ face screw up in pain, even for the tiniest second.

The thought that he should probably call for Aaron was in the very back of Jesus’ mind when he carefully pulled on a pair of boots and slowly made his way out of Barrington House and out into Hilltop. At midday, it was bustling with activity, and a smile came to his face at the sight of it. Even though part of him hated leading it, the thought that he could have lost it all if Aaron hadn’t gotten him back in time still slightly terrified him.

As he walked, slowly and carefully so he didn’t hurt himself, he subconsciously found his feet taking him towards the herb garden. Over the past week he’d taken the time to go over the requests that Tara had told him about a few days earlier, and one of the ones he’d granted had been giving Enid more space in the garden for medicinal herbs. Aaron had mentioned a few days ago that he was planning on helping her plant some of them.

Neither of them noticed him when he stopped by the side of the closest trailer and watched them. Enid and Aaron were both kneeling by the garden, digging up the soil and planting the seeds. He smiled at the sight of it. After having to hide that he’d been meeting up with Aaron for so long, having it all out in the open felt strange, but he found that he liked it. And he knew Aaron liked it too – getting to spend time with Enid and the other residents of Hilltop – Tara and Alden, and new additions like Daryl and Magna’s group. 

Jesus watched as Aaron rubbed his forearm across his forehead, getting rid of the sweat, and stood up, crossing over to a small table by them where more seeds were sitting. It was that moment when Jesus’ cover was blown, the second when Aaron looked up and his eyes locked onto Jesus straight away. His face changed in an instant.

“Why didn’t you call for me?” Aaron exclaimed, leaving the table without a second thought and hurrying over to Jesus. Worry was clear on his face and in his voice. “I thought you understood when Enid told you that you needed to be careful.”  


Jesus chuckled and shook his head. “I’m going for a walk around Hilltop, Aaron, not fighting walkers. I think I’ll be just fine.” 

Even with Jesus’ reassurance, Aaron was still worried. “Well, what if you fell over and hurt yourself even more when you were on your own? You and I agreed that you’d wait for me.”

“ _If_ I fell over, which I didn’t, I’m more than positive that someone would be around to help me out. There are enough people here to notice something like that,” he smiled. “It’s okay, Aaron. I’m fine. And if it worries you that much, you can walk back to Barrington House with me.”

Aaron’s eyebrows furrowed. “Will you promise to call for me next time?”

Obliging Aaron, Jesus nodded. “Fine, fine. I’ll call for you. Are we good now?”

Jesus watched as Aaron hesitated for a few moments, his eyes searching Jesus’ face for any sign of a possible lie. His eyes instinctively flitted down to Jesus’ side where the stab wound was, hidden completely by his shirt now. Aaron sighed and his gaze dropped to the ground.

“You could have hurt yourself even more.”

“I know. But I didn’t. I’m okay, Aaron.”

“And if you had hurt yourself, then I’d end up feeling bad that I wasn’t there.”

Jesus frowned. “No, that wouldn’t be on anyone but me…” he paused and reached out a hand to squeeze Aaron’s shoulder. “Listen, I’m fine. And I’ll call for you next time, okay? It’s okay.”  


He watched as Aaron sighed and nodded slowly, his lips quirking up into a smile at the sight of it. In the back of his head, a thought echoed: _It was kind of cute that he was worrying about you like that._ He pushed it away instantly and let Aaron walk him back to Barrington House in silence.

* * *

Aaron stabbed a carrot with his fork at the same time as he chuckled at Tara’s words. She was sat across from him at the table and the two of them had been discussing Enid and Alden’s relationship and how obvious it was that Henry, Carol and Ezekiel’s son, had a crush on Enid. It had gotten them onto the topic of other Hilltop residents with crushes, and there was a surprising number of them.

“Surely there can’t be _that_ many,” Aaron started. “I think it’s pretty obvious when people have crushes on other people. I’m pretty sure everyone could tell that I had one on Eric when we first met all those years ago.”

Tara shrugged. “Yeah, but some people are more oblivious than others,” she added. Her eyes flitted behind Aaron and she instantly smiled. “Speaking of oblivious,” she muttered under her breath. “Hey, Jesus! Didn’t think we’d see you here tonight.”

Aaron spun around instantly, spotting Jesus walking slowly towards them. He took the spare seat beside Aaron with a smile, clearly pretty proud of himself for making it out to the dinner. After a few nights of having his dinner brought to him specially, he’d decided to try and make the trek out to be with the others now that he could walk.

“Thought I’d surprise you guys,” Jesus nudged Aaron with a smile.

“Well, it worked,” he mused.

Jesus served himself up some dinner and started eating instantly. Tara turned to talk to someone beside her and Jesus and Aaron ate mostly in silence, though they found comfort in each others silence, so it wasn’t awkward or out of the ordinary at all.

Half way through dinner, though, Jesus felt the urge to talk to Aaron. During their meet ups and training sessions they rarely spoke about normal things, so that was the topic Jesus picked.

“How’s Gracie doing? I haven’t seen her in years. She’s gotta be, what– six, now?”

Aaron chuckled. “Try eight.”

“Eight years old? You’re kidding.”

“Oh, I wish,” Aaron smiled. “She’s grown up so quick, I swear. And she has an absolute heart of gold. She’s something special, she is. Alexandria has been good for her. The people there, the other kids. Even when I’m not around I know she’s being cared for. It’s comforting.”

Smiling, Jesus nodded. Back when Aaron had unofficially adopted Gracie the two of them hadn’t really been friends, but he’d seen Gracie a few times and as she grew into a toddler, he’d seen that too. The way Aaron spoke about her warmed his heart.

“You know, I’d like to properly meet her one day,” he suggested.

Aaron’s eyes lit up and he turned to meet Jesus’ gaze. “Yeah? I’d like that.”

Jesus grinned

* * *

After dinner finished, Aaron helped Jesus up from the table and took it upon himself to head back to Barrington House with Jesus and make sure he got there in one piece, even though he was just being completely paranoid.

Tara, still sitting at the table, watched the two of them walking away with a smile on her face. Jesus and Aaron shared a smile as they walked up the steps to the house and disappeared inside. Shaking her head, she smiled. “Some people are so oblivious.”


	7. Chapter Six

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> It wasn't meant to happen this way. They were just supposed to be meeting up to train, to eventually get their communities back together. They weren't meant to be falling in love with each other as they did it. But even in the new world, life has a funny way of pushing people together.
> 
> An Aaron/Jesus fic, starting around 907 and changing the end of 908.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Here's chapter six – not too much Aaron/Jesus scenes in this one, but still a lot of love flying around amid all the chaos. It's a bit of a filler before everything gets serious but I like it either way! I hope you enjoy it and thank you for reading!

**_ONE WEEK LATER_ **

Jesus had been under the impression that being stuck at Hilltop and having to _lead_ the place had been bad, but after being bedridden and now truly stuck at Hilltop, he realised just how wrong he’d been. He, at least, had Aaron to keep him company most days, but he couldn’t even train him. On occasion, he’d watch Aaron fight with others and critique, but it wasn’t the same as doing it himself and truly, he missed it. Not only the training, but the fun he and Aaron had while they did it.

He’d grown used to expecting to see Aaron around the Hilltop when he got out of his bed each morning and wandered outside, usually finding him sitting at one of the long dining tables eating breakfast with the others. But this particular morning, as he scanned the people sitting there, a frown came to his face. He couldn’t see Aaron among them.

Tara spotted him before he could be confused for too long, though, and beckoned him over. He took a seat beside her and she shoved a plate in front of him before speaking. 

“Before you ask or get worried, Aaron’s fine,” she started. Jesus breathed a soft and quiet sigh of relief. “He went back to Alexandria this morning with a few guards. He told me that he wanted to say goodbye but you were sleeping and he didn’t want to bother you. He’ll be back in a few days and you have nothing to worry about.”

Everything clicked together in Jesus’ head. Of _course_ he went back to Alexandria. It’d been two weeks since he was there last, which meant two weeks without his home and two weeks without Gracie. Plus, he figured, he’d have to tell Michonne what was going on now that her, Siddiq, Rosita and Eugene were back there. And it was typical of Aaron to take on the messenger role.

He ate his breakfast in silence, adding in to Tara, Enid, Daryl and Alden’s conversation on occasion but mostly thinking about the fact that, for the first time in two weeks, he was having to spend time without Aaron in his life. And he’d done that before. He’d spent _longer_ than two weeks without Aaron before, but now it just felt unnatural. Like he was supposed to be here and then all of a sudden he was just gone. He didn’t like it.

After breakfast he and Tara headed back into Barrington House and Jesus set himself up on the couch at the top of the stairs where he’d set up a base ever since Maggie left. Tara hated that he was still using it as his office, but Jesus liked it that way. Using Maggie’s office just didn’t feel right, even if he had accepted that this was his job now and he had to take it seriously. 

The two of them worked for most of the day, going through paperwork that the people of Hilltop had filed and filling out requests. They worked out a good system, with anyone who wanted to request something coming up to talk to them both and then, afterwards, the two of them discussed the pros and cons. By the end of the day, Jesus was exhausted. He only managed to get a few forkfuls of dinner into him before deciding to retire to his room for the night.

“I think I’m going to head up,” Jesus turned to Tara.

She raised her eyebrows in surprise. “Are you feeling okay?”

He nodded in confirmation. “Yeah, just had a long day, that’s all,” he smiled. “I never thought that going through all those requests and files would take it out of me so much. I guess I should apologise for shovelling it all on you before.”

Tara grinned. “Oh, so now you apologise?”

Jesus laughed and shook his head, amused. “You shouldn’t have had to pick up the pieces after me. I should have stopped trying to fight it,” he admitted. “Aaron told me, the day I was stabbed, that he thinks I’d be a good leader if I stopped fighting it.”

“Yeah?”

“Yeah,” he nodded. “So I’m going to _try_ to stop fighting it.”

Tara couldn’t keep the smile off of her face.

“I’m glad to hear that, Jesus. I’m really glad to hear that.”

As he made his way back into Barrington House, he couldn’t help but sigh at the thought that usually, Aaron was by his side, making sure he got back to his room all right. And he was sure Aaron was fine, that he was camping out somewhere safe for the night before returning to Alexandria the following morning. But it still didn’t lessen the feeling that was starting to rise in his heart that he actually _missed_ the man more than he’d ever missed anyone before.

* * *

Aaron and the guards reached Alexandria the following morning. He was greeted at the gates by Rosita, who was recovering well, though still a little shaken up. She was back at home now, though, and she had Gabriel, so Aaron was positive she was going to be just fine.

Michonne and Siddiq appeared soon after, both of them looking happy to see him, though Michonne’s happiness was a little more muted than Siddiq’s. Aaron still noticed and appreciated it, even though she wasn’t beaming with her joy. 

“How have things been?” He asked, walking alongside them.

“There’s a lot to catch you up on,” Siddiq said. “How’s Hilltop?”

“It’s good,” Aaron mused. “Jesus is healing well and he’s started walking around again. It’ll be a while before he’s back to normal but he’s getting there, and he and Tara are working on leading the place and getting things organised together. Enid is doing well, as is Alden, and Henry is settling in. The girl you brought in, Lydia, is still being questioned by Daryl, as far as I’m aware. But I try not to pry. What’s going on here?”

Michonne sighed. “Negan escaped the night Jesus was stabbed. His cell door was found open and he was gone. We searched the surrounding area for a week but we haven’t found a sign of him. Gabriel isn’t taking it well.”

Aaron stopped instantly. “He escaped?”

She nodded. “Gabriel said he yelled at Negan the day he escaped. He thinks he forgot to lock the cell door before leaving and Negan realised it was open,” she explained. “Luckily he didn’t hurt anyone, but still…”

He could tell that it was hurting her, Negan having escaped. Rick had been the one to decide to keep him locked up and to save his life and part of Michonne clearly felt like she’d let him down a little by letting him escape. Aaron rubbed her arm softly.

“You’ll find him. I know you will.”

* * *

The second Aaron stepped foot in his house he was attacked, arms wrapping around his middle and face burying into his torso. Gracie. He laughed and wrapped his arms around her, happy beyond belief to be back with her.

For the rest of the afternoon, he and Gracie sat and talked on the couch about everything over the past week. She told him what she’d been learning at school and talked to him about some of the other kids, including Judith and R.J. Their conversation felt normal and Aaron was happy to be home, but some part still yearned for something more. Like something was missing. He pushed the feeling away, though, not wanting to ruin a good afternoon.

When Gracie brought up the topic of where Aaron had been for the past two weeks he didn’t see any way around discussing it, so he explained almost everything to her. That he’d been at the Hilltop with, in his words, the person he cared the most about in the world, other than Gracie, taking care of him and spending time with them as they prepared for the fair. 

He couldn’t help but smile as Gracie told him that she wanted to meet this person.

The smile on her face when Aaron informed her that Jesus wanted to meet her, too, made every single thing worth it.

* * *

The sight of the Hilltop gates brought a smile to Aaron’s face instantly as they swung open for him and he rode in on his horse, followed by the Hilltop guards that had accompanied him. It’d been a long few days and even though he was missing Alexandria and Gracie already, he was thrilled to be back at Hilltop, the new place he was learning to call another home.

Thinking that he couldn’t be happier, his thoughts were instantly changed upon seeing Jesus standing a few feet away from the horses, smiling at the sight of Aaron. It’d been a long few days without him, and while he’d gotten some work done, having Aaron back at the Hilltop set most of his worries to rest instantly.

Slowly, he wandered down to Aaron as he dismounted and the guards took his horse away and back to the stables. 

Aaron spoke first. “Jesus, I’m so sorry I didn’t tell you myself that I was going the other day, but you were asleep and you looked so peaceful and happy and I couldn’t bring myself to wake you up. It was a last minute decision.”

Jesus shook his head. “Aaron, it’s fine. You don’t need to apologise. I understand.”

“You do?”

“Of course I do,” he assured him. “You had to go back home, you had to see Gracie and your people. I understand that. I’m never going to be mad at you for wanting to spend time with your family, Aaron.”

“So you won’t be mad if I want to spend time with you now that I’m back?”

Jesus laughed. “Nice segway.”

With a grin, Aaron replied. “Thank you, I’m very proud of it.”

He shook his head and pointed over to the tables. “Come on, they’re about to start serving up the dinner and I’ve got the two of us a seat, since you apparently want to spend time with me,” he chuckled. “Sound good?”

Aaron grinned. “Sounds great.”


End file.
